Pus in milk?

In NutritionFacts.org‘s video-of-the-day today, I note that the antiseptics used to disinfect cow teats can provide a source of iodine, but have been found to boost the level of pus in the milk of cows with staph-infected udders. Today’s dairy cows endure annual cycles of artificial insemination, pregnancy and birth, and mechanized milking for 10 out of 12 months of the year (including seven months of their 9-month pregnancies). This excessive metabolic drain overburdens the cows, who are considered “productive” for only two years and are slaughtered for hamburger when their profitability drops, typically around their fourth birthday – a small fraction of their natural lifespan.

Calcium absorption: soy milk versus cow milk

What About Milk?

• Calcium: Green vegetables, such as kale and broccoli, are better than milk as calcium sources.
• Fat Content*: Dairy products—other than skim varieties—are high in fat, as a percentage of total calories.
• Iron-Deficiency: Milk is very low in iron. To get the U.S. Recommended Dietary Allowance of 11 milligrams of iron, an infant would have to drink more than 22 quarts of milk each day. Milk also causes blood loss from the intestinal tract, depleting the body’s iron.
• Diabetes: In a study of 142 children with diabetes, 100 percent had high levels of an antibody to a cow’s milk protein. It is believed that these antibodies may destroy the insulin-producing cells of the pancreas.
• Contaminants: Milk is frequently contaminated with antibiotics and excess vitamin D. In one study of 42 milk samples tested, only 12 percent were within the expected range of vitamin D content. Of ten samples of infant formula, seven had more than twice the vitamin D content reported on the label, and one had more than four times the label amount.
• Lactose: Three out of four people from around the world, including an estimated 25 percent of individuals in the United States, are unable to digest the milk sugar lactose, which then causes diarrhea and gas. The lactose sugar, when it is digested, releases galactose, a simple sugar that is linked to ovarian cancer and cataracts.
• Allergies: Milk is one of the most common causes of food allergy. Often the symptoms are subtle and may not be attributed to milk for some time.
• Colic: Milk proteins can cause colic, a digestive upset that bothers one in five infants. Milk-drinking mothers can also pass cow’s milk proteins to their breast-feeding infants. 

How Dairy Actually Causes Osteoporosis

I know what you are thinking, dairy prevents osteoporosis. It keeps my bones strong right? Wrong. The more dairy you consume the weaker your bones become, let me explain how. 

Thinking back to High School Chemistry, we remember acids and alkaline. When placed together they neutralize making both ineffective. What many don't realize is that calcium is an alkaline, while the proteins in milk are an acid. The problem is that there is actually more acid in the milk than alkaline calcium. So when you drink the milk, your body has to leach more calcium from what is already in your bones in order to neutralize the acids coming in. Of course we cannot give dairy all the blame, but it is definitely a large part of the problem. The problem is too much protein in our diets. It is so sad that those who consumes dairy to prevent osteoporosis, are actually causing the opposite to occur.